Patent Grant
PP19282
Botanical designation: Euphorbia pulcherrima.
Cultivar denomination: ‘PER1124’.
The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Poinsettia plant, botanically known as Euphorbia pulcherrima Willd., and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘PER1124’.
The new Poinsettia a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Encinitas, Calif. The objective of the breeding program is to create new Poinsettia cultivars having strong stems, recurved leaves and flower bracts, attractive flower bract coloration, uniform plant habit and excellent post-production longevity.
The new Poinsettia originated from a cross-pollination made by the Inventor in December, 2001 of a proprietary selection of Euphorbia pulcherrima Willd. identified as code number V-75, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent, with the Poinsettia cultivar PER1072, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 15,883, as the male, or pollen, parent. The cultivar PER1124 was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination in a controlled environment in Encinitas, Calif. in December, 2002. The selection of this plant was based on its attractive flower bract colors and good plant form and substance.
Asexual reproduction of the new Poinsettia by terminal vegetative cuttings in a controlled environment in Encinitas, Calif. since January, 2003, has shown that the unique features of this new Poinsettia are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.
The cultivar PER1124 has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘PER1124’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘PER1124’ as a new and distinct cultivar of Poinsettia:
Plants of the new Poinsettia differ from plants of the female parent selection primarily in leaf and flower bract color as plants of the female parent selection have lighter green-colored leaves and mauve pink-colored flower bracts.
Plants of the new Poinsettia differ primarily from plants of the male parent, the cultivar PER1072, primarily in flower bract color as plants of the cultivar PER1072 have dark red-colored flower bracts.
Plants of the new Poinsettia can be compared to plants of the cultivar Windark, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 12,546. In side-by-side comparisons conducted in Encinitas, Calif. plants of the new Poinsettia differed in flower bract color and time to flower as plants of the new Poinsettia had dark red-colored flower bracts and flowered about two weeks earlier than plants of the cultivar Windark.
The accompanying colored photographs illustrate the overall appearance of the new Poinsettia, showing the colors as true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in colored reproductions of this type. Colors in the photographs may differ slightly from the color values cited in the detailed botanical description which accurately describe the colors of the new Poinsettia.
The photograph at the bottom of the sheet comprises a side perspective view of a typical flowering plant of ‘PER1124’ grown in a container.
The photograph at the top of the sheet is a close-up view of a typical inflorescence of ‘PER1124’.
The new Poinsettia has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype. The aforementioned photographs, following observations and averaged measurements describe plants grown in Encinitas, Calif. during the winter under commercial practice in a polyethylene-covered greenhouse with day temperatures averaging about 24° C., night temperatures averaging about 19° C. and light levels about 4,000 foot-candles. Single plants were grown in 16.5-cm pots and pinched once. Plants were flowered under natural season short day/long night conditions. Plants were about 21 weeks from unrooted cuttings when the photographs and the detailed botanical description were taken. In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 1995 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used.
